Republic Act 6967 (1989) vested exclusive jurisdiction, administration and complete control of Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve to University of the Philippines (UP) Los Baños, to be used as training laboratory for advancement of scientific and technical knowledge on natural resources conservation and watershed protection. Executive Order 224 (1987) included Mt. Makiling as a geothermal energy reservation area of the National Power Corporation
Republic Act 5323 (1963) disestablished the Makiling National Park and then ceded, transferred and conveyed as Makiling Forest Reserve to UP for use as a training laboratory in forestry, management, botany and wildlife.
Mt. Makiling is an inactive volcano – no records of volcanic eruption in historic time since 16th century; rock age determinations indicate eruption periods between 100,000 to 500,000 years before present (Oles & Houben 1998)
Highest peak at 1090 m asl, Mt. Makiling is a priority biodiversity conservation area. It is one of the Philippines’ 18 centers of plant diversity, best known biological area in the Philippines owing to long scientific history
Mt. Makiling is home to more than 2,000 species of flowering plants, 291 species of ferns, 211 species of mosses, 45 species of mammals, 181 species of birds, 65 species of reptiles, 22 species of amphibians and thousand insects and other arthropods
Location
Los Baños, Laguna
How to get there
From Manila, take a bus going to Sta. Cruz, Laguna. Get off at Los Baños crossing. From there, take a jeepney with the “UP Los Baños” signboard. This jeepney will go inside the campus where one can get off for the hike to the mountain.
Contact Person / Office
Dr. Portia Gamboa-Lapitan or Mr. Robert Cereno
The Director, Makiling Center for Mountain Ecosystems
College of Forestry and Natural Resources
University of the Philippines – Los Baños, Laguna
Tel nos. : (049) 536-3572; 536-2637
Contact